Human Rights Campaign yesterday launched a statement supported by a number of corporations calling on public officials to defeat or abandon efforts to enact harmful anti-LGBT legislation being considered around the United States

Human Rights Campaign (HRC) yesterday launched a statement supported by a number of corporations calling on public officials to defeat or abandon efforts to enact harmful anti-LGBT legislation being considered around the United States.

American Airlines, Apple, Levi Strauss, Microsoft, Orbitz, Replacements, Starwood Hotels, Symantec and Wells Fargo have already signed the statement while other corporations are expected to sign on in the coming days.

HRC President Chad Griffin said:

"Business leaders have made it abundantly clear that these anti-LGBT bills undermine their core values and set dangerous precedents that stifle investment and economic growth. Anti-equality lawmakers who value corporate investments in their state should sit up, pay attention, and abandon these bills attacking LGBT people."

The HRC statement reads:

"Corporate leaders are speaking out against bills that could allow individuals and businesses to discriminate against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and other minorities — several versions of which are actively being considered in states across the country.

“This proposed legislation is bad for business.

“Equality in the workplace is a business priority to foster talent and innovation, and these state laws undermine this core value.

“These state laws set a dangerous precedent that stifles investment and economic growth by jeopardizing a state's status as a welcoming place for employees to live and thrive, undermining the success of a business at large.

“It is unreasonable for job creators to recruit a diverse workforce from states that encourage businesses to discriminate against our community of employees or consumers.

“While these bills won't alter our commitment to equality in the workplace, this legislation sends the wrong message about the states in which we operate and threatens our core corporate commitment to respect all individuals.

“We the undersigned call for public officials to defeat or abandon efforts to enact this type of harmful legislation."

Yesterday, 39 top tech leaders – including Yelp, Twitter, AirBnB and Evernote – released a joint statement supporting non-discrimination protections for LGBT people to civil rights laws around the country.

Watch a report on a Christian pizza restaurant in Indiana that unfortunately cannot cater for your same-sex wedding, AFTER THE JUMP… Stupid warning – the owners actually believe that people "choose" the "gay lifestyle."